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Samsung Galaxy A36 5G OS, UI, and Software
Samsung Galaxy A36 5G runs on Android 15 out of the box with One UI 7.0 on top. The layout of most UI elements has remained unchanged for years, it is the design of the separate elements that has evolved - font style and size, icon shape, colors, symbols, etc. The Lock Screen has a Clock widget in the center of the upper half with a tiny Date widget below, while the bottom left and right corners are occupied by shortcuts to the Phone and Camera apps, respectively. The Home Screen has retained the usual layout of a docked row of apps, favorites, and a search bar right above them. The Widgets are placed on the upper half of the Home screen. The default ones are Weather, Calendar, and Samsung Health. There's a second desktop with selected apps on it, while all apps can be viewed from the app drawer. The One UI sidebar is activated by default for quick access to desired apps and features. From the Home settings, you can switch to a desktop-only app access. Google Discover is on by default. Desktop shortcuts are supported.
The Task Manager lists the app previews horizontally one on top of the other. The app icon on top of each allows you to access the app info, open the app in a split-screen view, open it in a pop-up view, or simply lock it to keep it open at all times. From the pop-up view, you can expand to full screen, enter split-screen mode, or close the app. The Customization Picker contains the standard Android options for wallpaper and style, a link to the Galaxy Themes app, a list of widgets, and Home settings. This list of options goes back to the very first One UI. The Volume rocker onscreen settings are revamped to the latest design language. A swipe down from the left side of the screen opens the Notifications shade. A swipe down from the right side of the screen opens the Quick Settings. The latter contains the standard toggles that can expand within the page, a brightness level bar with auto brightness toggle, a volume bar, a media player shortcut, and four other toggles for nearby devices, Smart View, SmartThings, and Modes. The Power off menu includes the usual Power off, Restart, and emergency call options adding a Medical info shortcut as well as a shortcut to the side button settings.
Samsung Galaxy A36 5G arrives with plenty of pre-installed apps. The standard Samsung applications include Samsgun Shop, SmartThings, Voice Recorder, My Files, Internet (browser), Health, Wearable, Wallet, Find, TV, Smart Switch, Themes, Gaming Hubg, Samsung Free, Global Goals, Gallery, Galaxy Store, etc. There are also classic Google apps such as Play Store, Photos, Gemini, Drive, Maps, Chrome, Gmail, Google Discover, Meet, YouTube, YT Music, etc. Standard Android apps include Phone, Messages, Clock, Camera, Contacts, Settings, Calendar, and Calculator, each tweaked to Samsung's One UI design language. Additional pre-installed applications include Facebook, Netflix, Spotify, Microsoft Copilot, LinkedIn, Microsoft 365, and others.
If you haven't had a Samsung smartphone before, here are a few words for its apps. With SmartThings, you can connect, monitor, and control multiple smart home devices quickly and easily. The Samsung Shop gives you exclusive access to offers, only available on the app. Samsung Health has various features to help you manage your health. The app allows you to automatically record many activities, creating a healthy lifestyle. The Galaxy Wearable application connects your wearable devices to your mobile device. It also manages and monitors the wearable device features. With Wallet, you get the features and benefits of Samsung Pay, plus Samsung Pass, digital home and car keys, digital asset management, and more.
Samsung Smart Switch seamlessly transfers contacts, photos, music, videos, messages, notes, calendars, and more to virtually any Samsung Galaxy device. The TV app is the cast display feature - you can see what's displayed on the smartphone transferred to your TV. Samsung Find lets you share your location with your loved ones, like your family and friends, and see where your connected family and friends are in real-time. It also protects you and your family’s Galaxy devices from loss and provides real-time GPS location tracking so you can easily find them. Samsung Internet is the brand's web browsing application with plenty of features such as a Video Assistant, Dark Mode, Customized menu, Translator, Secret mode, Smart Anti-Tracking, and Smart Protection.
The Settings application lists the various menus into several groups. The settings search is accessible from every page within the app and is very helpful as the logic of listing the various options is different from the standard Android one. The first menu constitutes a group of its own and is about managing the smartphone's owner Samsung account with links to security and privacy features, links to other accounts, and various Samsung apps such as Find, Pass, Cloud, etc. The second group is about connectivity with two menus - "Connections" and "Connected devices", explained in detail in the Connectivity section of this review. The third group begins with "Moeds and Routines". These options allow your device's settings and behavior to change to match your activity or situation. You can manage several modes such as sleep, driving, work, game, relaxation, and theater. You can also create your predefined routines and even automate them for various situations.
"Sounds and vibration" is the second menu in the third group. It begins with three toggles for a sound profile and a vibration while ringing toggle. The settings continue with ringtones, notification sounds, system sounds, volumes, and vibrations settings. Then you get Samsung's sound quality and effects with which you can adjust your audio experience to provide the best results customized to your own liking. The separate app sound feature is also on board. "Notifications" is the third menu from the third group. Aside from managing app-level notifications, you can also customize how they appear on the lock screen and whether you want them to be visible there at all. The same customization options are also available for notifications appearing on the status bar. Further customization is available with the navigation pop-up style including the edge lighting style (if enabled). Furthermore, you get advanced notification settings including history, conversations, filters, sorting, bubbles, app icon badges, wireless emergency alerts, etc.
"Display" and "Battery" are the next menus that comprise the fourth group. The "Battery" menu is discussed in detail in the corresponding section of this review. The "Display" menu contains plenty of standard features such as a light/dark theme toggle, dark mode settings, brightness level bar with auto brightness toggle, font size and style, screen zoom, screen timeout, and easy mode. The refresh rate options are listed under the "Motion smoothness" sub-menu. The night light eye protection feature is a toggle called "Eye comfort shield". You can also choose to hide the camera cutout for the entire device or for select apps. From the "Display" menu you can also select a screen mode for more vivid or natural colors. The type of navigation is also chosen from here. Finally, there are two more toggles - for increasing the touch sensitivity and for accidental touch protection.
The fifth group of settings contains all options found in the Customization Picker plus additional settings for the lock screen and the always-on-display (AOD). The "Wallpaper and style" menu is first and is followed by the Samsung Galaxy Themes. "Home settings" is third, and the "Lock screen and AOD" menu is fourth. The Home screen settings let you adjust the app size, app and widget labels, home screen layout and grid, change the launcher style - app drawer to desktop view and vice versa, etc. You can also toggle on/off a home screen layout lock, app icon badges, etc. The "Lock screen and AOD" menu allows you to set your screen lock and biometrics, enable extended unlock features, secure lock settings, toggle on/off the AOD, unlock transition effect, roaming clock, touch-and-hold to edit, and other features. The "Now bar" feature is also under this menu. It lets you check the information you need right now and start essential features without unlocking your phone.
The "Security & Privacy" menu is the first in the next group of settings. It contains the standard Android security features such as Lock screen settings, Account security, Lost device protection, App security, and Security updates. There's also a link to the screen lock and biometrics menu. Samsung has included an expanded set of security and privacy settings such as secure Wi-Fi, SIM card security, Secure Folder, Enhanced data protection, internet privacy protection, etc. The "Location" and "Safety and Emergency" menus round off this group and all in all offer the latest standard features for privacy and physical security. The next group comprises the "Accounts and Backup" and "Google" menus, which are self-explanatory.
These are followed by the "Advanced features" menu which constitutes a group on its own. They begin with the "Intelligent features" sub-menu that mainly relates to snapping and editing photos. These include Object Eraser, Edit suggestions, Custom filters, AI select, and Read aloud. The latter concerns articles and websites. Further advanced features are the Bixby settings, Labs, One-handed mode, Galaxy Avatar, and the Video Effects toggle. From the "Advanced features," you can manage the behavior of the power button, enable multi-window features, toggle on and off various gestures and motions, and edit the settings for snapping screenshots and screen recording. "Game Booster" settings are also under the "Advanced features" menu. From here you can select a level of game optimization, customize individual games, edit pop-up apps, save battery power during gaming, and other tweaks. The last feature is the "Dual Messenger". The supported apps will appear there once you install them and Samsung gives you the option to use a separate contacts list for each iteration of an app.
The next group comprises the standard" Digital Wellbeing and parental controls" menu, Samsung's "Device care" menu, and "Apps". The "Device Care" menu gives you up-to-date information on the status of the device and suggestions on how to optimize it. You get quick access to the battery settings for power management, storage and memory, app security, auto optimization, and software updates. The last but one group comprises the "General management" features and the "Accessibility" settings. The first manages the device and app languages, voice input, date and time, keyboard settings, physical keyboard, mouse, and trackpad settings, and the customization service. Samsung has extensive experience in providing excellent accessibility features with vision enhancements, TalkBack, hearing enhancements, interaction, and dexterity. There are also advanced options such as quick panel buttons for color correction color filters, extra dimming, flash notifications, additional accessibility settings applied to the physical buttons of the device, etc. The last group of settings comprises four menus - "Software update", "User Guide, "Remote management", and "About phone", which are quite self-explanatory.
